ECB executive warns against currency war

Attempts to target exchange rates risk setting off a currency war, a top European Central Bank executive argued today, just days after U.S. officials made their case for a weaker dollar to boost trade.

ECB board member Benoit Coeure said at the World Economic Forum in Davos that talks over exchange rates should be returned to the confines of global meetings like the G7 and the G20, as the recent public noise is proving unhelpful.

"The last thing the world needs today is a currency war," Coeure said a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos. "We live in a world where exchange rates are not and should not be targeted for competitive purposes."

"We see lots of volatility created recently by different statements and I think that's just not helpful," Coeure said. "Volatility is not helpful and if that would reach a point where it would create any unwarranted consequence for us, any unwarranted tightening for monetary policy, we would have to reassess." ...

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